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Unit of study_
DESC9675: High Performance Facades
2025 unit information
This unit explores advanced building facades and their role in reducing environmental impacts while simultaneously enhancing indoor environment quality for building occupants. Advanced facades are those that are designed, analysed, procured and operated as a system. Optimisation of the often conflicting performance criteria of cooling load, lighting and daylighting, sound isolation, occupant comfort, costs and aesthetics requires an integrated approach from the whole team including architects, project managers, suppliers and engineers, from the earliest stages of the advanced facade design process. Specific topics to be covered in this unit include the integrated design approach to facades, the fundamental building physics determining facade performance, structural facade typologies, solar control facades, daylighting facades, double-skin facades, ventilated facades and dynamic facade systems. Various analytical procedures and simulation tools for the evaluation of high performance facade designs will also be examined. Costs and benefits of various design approaches will also be assessed from both owner and occupant perspectives.
Unit details and rules
Managing faculty or University school:
Sydney School of Architecture, Design and Planning
| Study level | Postgraduate |
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| Academic unit | Architecture |
| Credit points | 6 |
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Prerequisites:
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None |
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Corequisites:
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None |
| Prohibitions:
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None |
| Assumed knowledge:
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None |
At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:
- LO1. Use and understand the language and terminology associated with building façades
- LO2. Identify typical façade system typologies and be able to critique them in terms of key performance characteristics and implications on procurement and construction
- LO3. Understand key attributes of envelope physics and be able to calculate simple energy transfer and BCA section J requirements
- LO4. Design systems and joints incorporating principles of movement, waterproofing, structure and thermal transfer
- LO5. Communicate clearly the critical aspects of façade system design and execution in a form suitable to form a contract.
Unit availability
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Modes of attendance (MoA)
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